Projects/Space missions of the Planetary Science Department

BepiColombo is a joint mission to planet Mercury between the European Space Agency ESA and the japanese counterpart JAXA. Launched on 19 October 2018 it will arrive at Mercury at the end of 2025. [more]

Cluster is an ESA project and consists of 4 identical spacecraft to study the dynamics of the Earth's magnetosphere at distances between 4 and 19 Earth radii. [more]

The Curiosity Rover is a NASA Flagship mission to the planet Mars built and operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The rover successfully landed inside Gale crater on Mars in August 2012. [more]

Dawn was NASA's mission to the asteroid belt. In 2011 the spacecraft reached the asteroid Vesta and accompanied it for more than a year. Dawn reached its second destination (dwarf planet Ceres) in 2015 where the mission ended in November 2018. [more]

DESTINY+ (Demonstration and Experiment of Space Technology for INterplanetary voYage for Phaethon fLyby and dUSt analysis) is a joint mission of the Japanese space agency JAXA and the German Aerospace Center DLR. The launch of the spacecraft is scheduled for 2024 and it will perform a close flyby of asteroid (3200) Phaethon in January 2028 at a distance of only 500 kilometers. [more]

The SPP 1992 addresses the diversity and complexity of exoplanets. It links observational methods for planet detection and characterization with theory and modeling. Here at the MPS we are investigating the key physico-chemical processes that determine the composition and temperature of (exo)planetary atmospheres. Additionally, our research focuses on studying the atmospheric dynamics of a special type of exoplanet - Hot Jupiters - because they are the observationally best characterised and most challenging from the modelling/theory point of view.
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The Exomars mission consists of an Mars-Orbiter, a descent module and a Mars-Rover. After arrival at Mars the descent module and rover will be separated from the orbiter. The rover will land on the surface. [more]

Insight is a NASA-Discovery-Mission to Mars launched in May 2018 and delivered a lander on the surface in November 2018 equipped with instrumentation to study the interior. [more]

The ESA-Mission JUICE shall explore the Jovian system. To be launched in 2022 the spacecraft will arrive at Jupiter in 2030. JUICE will for the very first time ever in history enter in an orbit around an outer planet's moon. [more]

Mars Express is Europe's ESA Mission to Mars launched in 2003 and still operating. The scientific payload is capable of searching for water on the planet. [more]

ESA’s Package for Resource Observation and in-Situ Prospecting for Exploration, Commercial exploitation and Transportation (PROSPECT) is a package to access and assess potential resources on the Moon and to prepare technologies that may be used to extract these resources in the future. [more]

Rosetta was ESA's mission to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Rosetta consisted of an orbiter and a lander called Philae. Rosetta reached the comet in 2014. In November 2014, Philae successfully landed on the comet's surface.

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